Turning point: U students find inspiration in dance marathon

A study break led Golden Gophers' football kicker Chris Hawthorne to discover the transformative power of dance.

"I was studying for a test in summer school two years ago and needed some mental relief from all the cramming I was doing," says Hawthorne, 21, of Raleigh, N.C.

"I went to YouTube to clear my head and stumbled onto a video of THON -- a Penn State dance marathon that raises money for their children's hospital," Hawthorne says. "I was blown away from the magnitude, scale and effect of this student-led event and the amount of good that came from it."

Hawthorne wondered if the Golden Gophers could organize something similar to benefit the University of Minnesota Amplatz Children's Hospital.

"I brought the idea to Anissa Lightner in Student-Athlete Development," Hawthorne says. "She said, 'This looks incredible, but how are we going to do it?' "

They have spent the last two years trying to answer that question. During this time, another Gopher joined the quest.

"When he asked if I would help, I said, 'Of course!'" says Christie Clarke, 20, a junior from New Jersey who swims for the women's swim and dive team.

Their research included participating in the two-day dance marathon at Penn State in February 2013.

"I felt the commitment of the students and the families," Clarke says.

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"I thought, 'This is making such a difference on and off campus, this is just what we need at the University."

For Hawthorne, it was just as powerful.

"I know some of the students at Penn State affected by the sanctions (related to the Jerry Sandusky scandal), so to see the community rally around the university in this student-led initiative to fight pediatric cancer was incredible," Hawthorne says. "Looking back, it's been the single most impactful experience I've ever had.

Christie Clarke

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It hasn't been easy, though.

"I'll be honest, it's the hardest thing I've ever done," says Hawthorne, who graduated a few weeks ago and now works as an intern for the Golden Gophers Fund. "It's not easy to activate 55,000 students as well as corporations, donors and alumni. But I've learned so much."

Clarke has learned a lot, too.

"Two weeks ago, I went to a Greek Life presidents' meeting to tell them about the event and to hand out wristbands and fliers," Clarke says. "When we asked how many of them had already heard about it, every person raised their hand."

This was not the case several months ago, when Clarke was collecting coins for the cause.

"When I first started canning outside of games, I'd say, 'This is for Amplatz Children's Hospital' and people would say, 'No, it's not, it's for your beer money,'" Clarke says, laughing. "I'd say, 'No, it's not, it's for the children.' So it's nice to know that now people are more familiar with the Unlimited Dance Marathon."

At press time -- before the dance --almost $30,000 has been raised, just by collecting money at various sporting events.